Rescued by NYPD and ASPCA, Two Dogs Get Second Chance

Last fall, NYPD patrol officers responded to a 311 call and found two underweight dogs living in deplorable conditions in a Bronx backyard. The officers brought the dogs, Hall and Oates, to the ASPCA Animal Hospital, where our veterinarians treated them. The owner was arrested and charged with misdemeanor animal cruelty.

Hall and Oates were part of the first group of animals to benefit from a new partnership between the ASPCA and the NYPD. With this groundbreaking collaboration, which started with a pilot phase in the Bronx in September 2013, the NYPD will now take the lead role in responding to all animal cruelty complaints in NYC’s five boroughs. The change—given the NYPD’s tens of thousands of officers across 77 precincts—will allow for a swift response to abuse complaints and expedite the ASPCA’s treatment and rehabilitation of abused animals.

In the first several months of the partnership, the NYPD received nearly 800 hundred calls from the public about suspected cruelty. Twelve arrests were made, and more than 30 animals were treated at the ASPCA.

The arresting officer in Hall and Oates’ case was moved by the experience. “I am going to look further into this matter and try to make a change,” the officer said at the time. “A lot of officers are interested in what I did today.”

If you live in New York City and witness animal cruelty, please call 311 (or 911 for crimes in progress) to notify the NYPD. To learn how to report cruelty in your state, please visit our Reporting Cruelty FAQ.